Imagine you’re a web designer (maybe you are one) and a client comes to you and says something like: “After looking through your portfolio, we’ve decided we’d really like to hire you for our next web design project.” The client then proceeds to give you all the details of the job and you’re stoked. You can’t wait to get going on the new project so you jump online, review your portfolio, pick a previous project you’ve worked on, and copy

The new year is in full swing for most of us by now and I’m sure your inbox has been inundated, like mine has, with posts about new year’s predictions, resolutions, and the like. And that’s all fine and dandy. But today, I want to talk about 16 simple ways we as freelancers can stand out from our competition in 2013. I’m not asking you to set any goals. I’m not making an predictions. Some of this stuff would have

Taking the plunge into freelancing is scary – we all know that. One of the reasons we’re so afraid is that we’re great designers but often know little about running a business (and that’s why many businesses fail). So to help you take your very first steps toward business prowess, I’ve compiled a list of business terms all freelance designers should know. After reading the list, leave a comment on this post and let me know which business terms I

It’s a new year again and with many of you wondering if now is the time to start freelancing, or how to take your freelance business to the next level, I’ve got the perfect resource for you! It’s a nearly-forty-minute-long video interview with Jonathan Wold, an amazing, impressive, successful entrepreneur who’s been making a killing as a designer/developer for a while now. In the interview, Jonathan shares his secrets on building a successful freelance business from scratch (and he’s got

The end of the year is drawing near which always gives me a chance to reevaluate the content we provide here at GDB. It let’s me think about how I can help you more in the coming year than in years past and what’s missing to really make GDB one of the most useful resources for designers, freelancers and entrepreneurs. I know for many of you the new year celebration coming up means delicious food and family time. So I

I recently worked with a freelancer who was putting together a video for me. The deadline was tight, the project was important, and I was relying heavily on him getting it right the first time. But when the first draft came back a week or so later, I was pretty disappointed. It wasn’t at all what I was looking for. In fact, I started to worry if we would even get the project done on time because, in my mind,

The last thing you want is to have a control freak hire you as a freelancer. To a freelancer, that’s like death. Of course you should always try to make your clients happy. And you should work with them to design a final project you can both be happy with. But there’s “working with” and there’s “being controlled by.” Am I right? You know the kind of person I’m talking about. You’ve worked with them before. Or at least, you’ve

I’m sure you know the marketing gimmick by now: the reason most retail stores price items at $99.99 instead of $100 is that it tricks the average consumer’s mind into believing an item is cheaper than it is. But does this pricing method work for freelancing as well? Does charging $249 – or $249.99 – instead of $250 bring in more clients? I contacted three highly-respected, veteran designers to get their input. Here’s what each one has to say (PS,

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